WHOEVER decided that pride comes before a fall obviously wasn't a football fan.

WHOEVER decided that pride comes before a fall obviously wasn't a football fan.

It was pride that very nearly saved the day for Tranmere on Saturday.

But the fall they suffered in the opening half against Brian Talbot's Rushden proved too great to recover from.

After 17 matches, 1,530 minutes and six and a half months of unbeaten football, a 30 minute lapse in quality ultimately proved Rovers' undoing.

They switched off, sat back and presented their visitors with the time and space in which to mastermind a two-goal lead.

It was a lead which was fully deserved.

But had Ray Mathias' side snatched an equaliser, as they so nearly did during a thrilling seven minutes of injury time, then there would have been few complaints from the travelling contingent.

The reason? Tranmere played with pride in the second half. It was the pride of a team that has become accustomed to getting its own way. The pride of a team refusing to accept defeat.

Ultimately, luck was not on their side. But while the home fans left the ground disappointed at the result and at the fact a club record unbeaten run had not been equalled, there was also a sense of optimism.

Decent teams do have bad days at the office. A good side can suffer a poor result.

Had Rovers not fought back so strongly and come so close to levelling the game then the alarm bell would have been ringing.

Instead, the impressive run may have been ended but the spirit which made that run possible was still very much in evidence.

At half-time Rushden's best player was attacking wide-man Paul Hall.

At the final whistle the Man of the Match accolade went to goal-keeper Billy Turley. That tells its own story.

Everything that Tranmere had done wrong in the first half was put right after the break.

The slack marking, the lack of urgency and the tendency of too many players to drift out of position.

Those failings came as something of a surprise. Rovers have set high standards for themselves during the 17 games before Saturday.

Those standards dropped in the opening half and Rushden, who are an accomplished passing side, took full advantage.

They may be new to the second division but Talbot's third division champions will not struggle this season. They have too much flair, too much ability.

That was present as early as the sixth minute when a low, early cross from right-back Marcus Bignot was emphatically swept home from the edge of the box by former Crewe striker Rodney Jack.

Tranmere should have responded brightly. They didn't.

Only Gary Jones looked capable of finding the net but twice he had headers turned away by Turley before the visitors deservedly extended their lead.

Their passing play was neat and incisive and on a number of occasions Tranmere were left chasing shadows.

It was one such incident which led to goal number two.

Midfielder David Bell skipped infield and played a one-two with Hall which caught the home side out. As he received the ball on the edge of the area he curled a sweet shot around John Achterberg and into the net.

Rovers' fans were disheartened, but they had to applaud what was a top class goal.

Tranmere's defence had allowed them the space, but the finish was still quality.

Mathias, by his own admission, gave his side a "rollicking" during the interval.

And they deserved it. They had not played like a side on the verge of matching a club record.

The second period was played virtually entirely in Rushden's half.

But it wasn't until the arrival of Eugene Dadi as a substitute that Tranmere looked capable of providing the cutting edge their play so desperately needed.

Iain Hume works his socks off, but his willingness to drift in to wide areas to receive the ball and torment the full-backs can leave Simon Haworth isolated if the support from midfield is not quick enough in arriving

It was not until the arrival of Shane Nicholson in the 56th minute that Haworth had a strike partner willing to stand alongside him and hold the ball up, while Hume was given license to maximise his efforts on the flank.

Rovers looked more balanced as a result. But when the goal came none of the forwards were involved.

Ian Sharps, who had stayed forward following a corner, received the ball on the right edge of the Rushden area and swept a tantalising cross into the six yard box.

The angle of the cross made it a nightmare for the home side to deal with.

But it was perfect for Jones, who timed his run to perfection to nod home from three yards at the back post.

That goal came with 21 minutes of normal time remaining.

Rovers continued to push but the real drama was reserved for injury time.

The play became more desperate and more risks were taken. It almost paid off.

Mickey Mellon fired inches over from 30 yards, Jones saw a low drive from 18 yards deflected on to the crossbar by Hume and then had a close range header parried by a brilliant one-handed save low to his left from Turley.

But the save of the game came in the 96th minute.

Tranmere humped a free-kick from midway inside the Rushden half deep into the penalty area as every out field player came forward.

Somehow the ball found Sharps, who himself had found a yard of space. He unleashed a fierce volley from 10 yards and as the ball left his foot the ground rose in anticipation of the goal.

Instead, Turley produced a magnificent save, diving to his right to push the ball around the post.

In that moment it was clear this was not going to be Tranmere's day. It was also clear that the pride was bursting from every sinew of every man in a white shirt.

They were devastated to lose. That is the kind of passion which will serve the club well this season.